Dyne Captures Top Rookie Honor

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. – Austin Dyne has been named the 2012 Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award winner in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West.

The 20-year-old Malibu, Calif., driver registered two top five and eight top 10 finishes in 14 starts this season, turning in an average finish of 9.25.

Dyne had to come from behind to capture the rookie title. Prior to making his series debut, he had not yet been cleared by NASCAR’s Résumé Committee to compete on a one-mile track such as Phoenix International Raceway, which hosted the season opener. He quickly started making up ground, however, finishing seventh in his series debut at Havasu 95 Speedway in Lake Havasu City, Ariz., and following that up with a career-best third-place finish at Miller Motorsports Park in Tooele, Utah.

Driving the No. 9 William Rast/Sunrise Ford/Lucas Oil Ford owned by Bob Bruncati, Dyne continued to move up in the rookie standings – bolstered by top-10 finishes in his first six races. He took the lead in the rookie standings with three races remaining and held on to take the title.

Past drivers to win the Sunoco Rookie of the Year honor in the NASCAR K&N Pro Series West include Derrike Cope, Chad Little, Bill Sedgwick, Rick Carelli, David Gilliland and most recently Dylan Kwasniewski.

Dyne will be recognized for his Sunoco Rookie of the Year Award at the NASCAR Night of Champions Awards on Saturday, Dec. 8 at the Charlotte (N.C.) Convention Center in the NASCAR Hall of Fame.